Design Tips

Many people hold the opinion that graphic design is all about artistic skills, but this is never the case at all the times. There are certain external factors, ranging from raw talent to personal taste, which all play a big role on how the final output will look like. Awareness of these external factors has a great influence on the design process. It is our mission to develop a website full of tools that will give our customers the ability to create their own designs with a lot of confidence.

While anyone is free to try their luck in the craft, it is evident that there are others who will do better than their fellows. If you are not fortunate enough to have been blessed with artistic prowess, then you don’t have to worry about a thing. If you follow the guidelines we have set below, you will have no problems in coming up with respectable designs or signs, vehicle layouts, and banners without having any prior artistic ability.

Choose colors that blend together and are easy on the eye

When designing, you need to choose colors that won’t blend together and also go for combinations that are not so difficult to the eyes. Though red and black may not be the best for readable choices, if you feel like using them, then you are free to do so. You must however, keep in mind that if you choose tone-to-tone variations, then you will be compromising on the readability. Just remember that your potential customers are likely to ignore your signs if they are unable to read them with a lot of ease. In the long run, this will lead to loss of lots of business.

In most cases, if you can read your advertisement from further away, the better chances it has of getting you more customers. Some of the recommended color selection includes yellow with green, yellow with black, white with any dark color such as blue, red etc. The important thing here is to choose colors that strongly contrast each other so that you get a leap off the design. If you are still keen on using dark combinations, such as red on black, it is recommended that you outline the edge of your letters with a white color. With this technique, you will be able to separate between the colors making them more visible to your audience.

Consider using shapes that fit your design’s concept

Suppose your design entails long rows of text, you should use a shape that will fit the intended concept. For instance, using a rectangular sign will accommodate your lettering very well in this case. Do not try to squeeze the design on a square sign since this will compel you to use small letters that will eventually lead to loss of valuable space. The same rule is also applicable if your design incorporates several short rows of text, each on top of the other. In such a case, go for a sign that is shaped to fit the lettering.

Don’t be affected with information overload

The more information you try to squeeze in your design, the more you are compromising the sign’s effectiveness. Don’t allow yourself to be affected by information overload. Simply give the necessary details and no more than this. As a rule of thumb: only include those things that need to be said and leave out all the rest.

Fill the sign’s area as much as possible

This doesn’t however imply that you get carried away and add unnecessary text or graphics just to cover up every available space. Get creative and make the design appealing as possible by intelligently filling up the sign’s area as much as possible.

Don’t forget about alignments

Alignment is very important in a design’s overall aesthetic appeal. We have awesome tools that you can use to create perfect alignment for any design you may have in mind. If the design you are working on requires to be aligned, make sure that you align it in the right manner. It is doesn’t require any alignment, then it implies that it was initially misaligned and the last thing you need is designs looking amateurish, hence you have to effect the proper alignment.

Finally, make it your habit to examine other designs. Search various sources for inspiration. We usually add new design templates to our database and you are free to use and modify them as you see fit.

Using graphics, colors and borders has a unique way of adding some flavor to your design. Be bold enough and put some of these techniques into use and see what you come up with; you may be surprised by the kind of results you get. We can create all these enhancements should you decide to use them in your designs.

If, after going through all these tips you still feel uncomfortable about designing your own signs, send any request you may have to our customer service staff. They will be happy to give you any assistance you may need.